God’s Generous Heart

When we think about God as a “Generous God” two questions come to mind:

Where have I seen God’s generosity?

How will I respond?

The goal of this lesson is for us to look at those questions and provide answers to them

Times are based on a 50-minute lesson period but can be adjusted as is necessary.

10 min

1. Ice Breaker: Giving and Receiving

The goal of this game is for teams of 5 to 7 people to end up with the least amount of candy. In the front of the room set up one empty bucket for each team: this is the “Receiving Bucket.” In the back of the room set up a second bucket for each team: this is the “Giving Bucket,” and it should be filled with candy. Place a few spoons or small cups near each team’s “Giving Bucket,” and make sure that there is an equal number of these per team, but not enough for every team member to have a spoon or cup. Set a 5 minute time limit for the game.

On “go,” each team will take the candy from their “Giving Bucket” and transport it to the “Receiving Bucket” of the other team. The catch is that one’s hands cannot be used to transport the candy. Team members can use the spoons or small cups to transport the candy, or they can use the spoon to put candy in someone’s pocket; or they can carry candy on their head or shoulder! But no one can use their hands to touch the candy. A team can take candy out of their “Receiving Bucket” and put it into another team’s “Receiving Bucket,” but they must first take the candy back to their own “Giving Bucket” and place it in that bucket before transporting to another team’s “Receiving Bucket.”

15 min

2. Read Scripture & Discuss

Read Deuteronomy 26:1-11. One person can read the entire passage or you can break it up and have two or three people read it.

In this passage, the Israelites are standing at the edge of the wilderness with the Promised Land in view. God is reminding them that they are about to get a fantastic inheritance from God. At the same time, they are told that they must return to God a portion of what they harvest.

How do you think they feel at this moment, after wandering in the wilderness for 40 years?

Have you ever had to wait for something? If so what?

What was it like when you finally received the thing that you were waiting for?

How did you show appreciation for what you had waited for?

When something that we have been waiting for finally comes our way, why is it so easy for us to take it for granted?

Why are we expected to give back to God?

A tithe is 10%. When you think about it, God isn’t asking for much. In modern terms, that means God is asking you for 10 cents of every dollar; you get to keep 90 cents, and that seems like a pretty good deal. How does giving a tithe (10%) of the Israelites’ harvest to God remind them of what they have been through?

Why do we have so much trouble giving back to God?

What excuses do we make?

Most Christians don’t tithe. Why not?

What are some ways that we can show that we recognize what God has done for us? In other words, how can we give back to God?

Read Romans 10: 8 – 13. One person can read the entire passage or you can break it up and have two or three people read it.

What does the passage tell us that we need to offer back to God?

God is asking us to do something; but, as is most often the case with God, we are being offered something in return. What is it that we are being offered?

In this passage the word “saved” is used multiple times. What does it mean to be “saved?”

We can think of being “saved” in an eternal sense, but there are other ways we are saved by God. What are some of them?

Being a follower of Jesus is not just about what we believe, but how we profess what we believe. Read verse 9. What are the 2 key components of our faith, according to this passage?

How do we “believe” with our heart?

How do we “confess” with our lips?

What are some examples of what this looks like? What would you say to someone who didn’t have a relationship with Jesus about the importance of our belief and confession?

What is the importance of what is being stated in verse 12?

In verse 13, we are told that everyone who calls on God is saved. How does verse 12 tie into that promise?